Store opens for the love of North Dakota: Starboard began as a way to help teen enjoy the area

Store opens for the love of North Dakota: Starboard began as a way to help teen enjoy the area

People ask why Starboard’s Lenny Johnson moved here from California. They’re thinking it was probably for the oil, but he was in North Dakota before the last boom was a Bakken twinkle in Wall Street’s eye.

Johnson was a recent presenter at Million Cups, a monthly Williston event that brings new entrepreneurs together with seasoned business owners and community leaders.

While the store’s name might evoke skate apparel, Starboard actually sells a variety of trendy clothing. It is owned by Johnson and his step-brother Jeff. How such a store came to be in Williston, even as retail has begun a downward slide nationwide, is a bit of a winding road.